Juice Cleanses: Don’t Waste Your Time

Juice Cleanses: Don’t Waste Your Time

Spring break! Time for all of us who haven’t gotten our “summer bods” ready yet to kick things into high gear. Cue the discounted gym memberships, emails from LuLuLemon, and juice cleanses!

Just kidding. Juice cleanses are a waste of time.

I’m not a hater, trust me. I love a good green juice as much as the next person, and think there are definitely benefits to incorporating them into your diet. But pledging to only drink juice for at least 3 days is not the way to go. Here’s 9 reasons why.

1. You’re going to be hungry. Really hungry.

Hello Hunger, my old friend.

Even though you’re still consuming calories, you’re not actually eating anything. You know that delightful crunch of your salad, or that first forkful of warm pasta? Kiss those goodbye. You get to come home from a long, hard day at work to a tall, cold glass of juice. Waaayy less satisfying.

2. There’s tremendous amounts of sugar.

An average juice on a cleanse will be a mix of fruits and veggies, but just think about this for a moment. 1 cup of Apple Juice has 39 grams of sugar. 39. Even if you’re only throwing a little bit of fruit in your smoothies to help the taste, it’s going to add up when you’re following a regimen of 5-6 juices a day. Sugars from fruit are metabolized a bit differently than processed sugars, but the fact remains the same. The body does not need this much sugar.

3. They’re expensive.

A 3 day cleanse from The Pressed Juicery is $129. I’m not sure about you, but feeding myself for 3 days has never costed $129. I get it, you’re paying for the healthy ingredients and the beautiful packaging, but it’s absolutely insane. And get this, they want you to buy “cleansing waters” as well as your juices. Cleansing waters. Isn’t that just…water?

If you’re planning on juicing at home, a good juicer will run you at least $150. This article on Organic News Room lists their top 3 juicers, the most expensive being $274. While it is a 1 time cost, that’s quite a chunk of money. Add in all of the fresh produce you’ll need to make enough juice to last you three days… yikes.

4. You’re sufficiently lowering your calorie intake.

Probably by too much. We know that a caloric deficit is key to losing weight, but cut down too much and your body goes into Starvation Mode (post on this coming next week!). According to the Pressed Juicery, juices can range from 50-300 calories. Let’s assume a juice is 150 calories. Assume 5 juices a day. 5×150 is 750 calories. The body goes into starvation mode (on average!!) at around 1200. If every juice you have is 300 and you have 6, then you’re sitting at 1800 which is much more manageable.

6. You’re depriving your body of nutrients.

While an argument for juice cleanses can be an increase in vitamins and minerals (due to the higher intake of fruits and veg), you’re depriving your body of other sources of protein, carbohydrates, and nutrients. Juicing also eliminates much of the fiber found in our favorite fruits and vegetables, which is one of their healthiest aspects.

7. You’ll start to feel tired, weak, and achey.

Juice cleanses cut down on your calories and nutrients, thus resulting in lowered energy levels. Ever tried making a fist when you first wake up? It’s hard. Your body is weak and barely awake for the day, so exerting that energy is difficult. You’re going to feel like that all day on a juice cleanse. Also, be prepared for some hunger-induced-headaches.

8. You’re damaging your liver.

When it comes to metabolizing sugar, you can thank your liver. Much like drinking too much alcohol, consuming too much sugar can overwork your liver. When the liver is overworked, it converts this sugar directly into fat and then stores some, and releasing the rest into your bloodstream. This fat storage is what leads to Liver disease down the line. While there are definitely other sources of sugar to be avoided, juice cleanses are one of them.

9. Your body detoxes itself.

I know you’ve heard it before. But seriously. People doing these “cleanses” and “detoxes” are ignoring the fact that our bodies are meant to do this. That’s what your liver, pancreas, and kidneys are for. There are foods you can consume that will aid in this process, but going on a full-fledged cleanse is not necessary.

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[…] And then it’s February, and you start slacking. Then March rolls around and you tell yourself OK it’s go time. Get serious. Then it’s April 1st and you start thinking shit shit shit, and pray that you can drop those 20 pounds with a juice cleanse (news flash: you can’t). […]